Panhandle-South Plains Fair sets deadlines for livestock shows
Junior and Open Livestock Show exhibitors showing animals at the September Panhandle-South Plains Fair are reminded they face an Aug. 23 entry deadline, reports Steve L. Lewis, fair manager.
During the 82nd annual event, set for Sept. 25-Oct. 2, exhibitors will compete for more than $120,000 in prize money in 10 livestock shows.

Corn borer, greenbugs cause headaches for area producers
South Plains corn and grain sorghum growers face the potential of damage from a pair of pests this summer.
For corn farmers, it's the Southwestern corn borer, a critter that's been laying eggs throughout portions of the South Plains in recent days.

Chris Van Wagenen
If you're thinking about buying a home and have never owned one, now is the time to get your hat in the ring.

Fidelity Magellen first mutual to hit milestone
NEW YORK The Fidelity Magellan fund has become the first mutual fund to reach $100 billion in assets, but for investors, the milestone is more than just another record high and round number it offers them an opportunity to reflect on big funds and whether it's smart to be in them.

June construction takes dive
June contracts involving future construction in Lubbock County plunged 64 percent from $32.5 million to $11.7 million, based on the latest data furnished by the F.W. Dodge Division of the McGraw Hill Companies.

Truckers face drive time limits
WASHINGTON (AP) For the first time in 60 years, the Federal Highway Administration plans to propose new limits on the number of hours truckers can drive each day.
The agency, in a rule this fall, is expected to force drivers to be off duty for at least 14 hours in a 24-hour period, according to trucking industry sources who spoke Friday on condition of anonymity.

Ahead of schedule
The goal was an ambitious one $100 million in export sales by the year 2000.
But with months to spare, the Northwest Texas-International Trade Center has done just that providing export support to more than 450 West Texas businesses that are learning how to trade abroad.

Business Today
WASHINGTON President Clinton on Friday nominated Roger W. Ferguson, a Harvard-trained economist and lawyer, to be vice chairman of the Federal Reserve.

Nation's jobless rate holds steady
WASHINGTON (AP) Businesses added more than 300,000 jobs to their payrolls and increased wages by a larger-than-expected amount in July good news for workers, but worrisome to economists anticipating another interest rate increase by the Federal Reserve. The unemployment rate held steady at 4.3 percent.

Mortgage rates may alter monetary policy
NEW YORK As an economic indicator, the housing industry is worth watching: Interest-rate sensitive, it is one of the first to show the effects of a change in monetary policy.

The $16 Million Film
INCH FOR INCH, THE 26-second home movie taken by dress manufacturer Abraham Zapruder of the assassination of President John F. Kennedy has to be the most expensive piece of celluloid in American history.

Dolphin Controversy
MANY ANIMAL LOVERS do not like zoos because they do not like to see wild animals in captivity. It follows that marine animals in captivity would be just as offensive to some people as is the confinement of land-based animals.

Burle Pettit
IT'S NOT THAT Doug Hensley enjoys abuse; it's more like that during many years as a sportsright, he simply became accustomed to it. In those days, it came in clumps -- from the reader who can't find the Hanover score, from the coach who's shouting "he don't know football," from all his bosses who used to have that job and did it better and, especially, from the wife who's making another trip to the microwave with a dinner two-three hours past the time the candles were lit and the wine was poured.
Science has proven that abuse that's part of the job ferments into abuse that's part of life its ownself, the essence of one's destiny, so to speak.

Alerting The Public
WE THOUGHT THAT the Amber Plan, a cooperative effort between Dallas-area authorities and television and radio broadcasters to locate kidnapped children, was a good idea when it initially was put into effect in 1996.

Umps Made Bad Call
RICHIE PHILLIPS, WHO has been making the pitches for the major league umpires in their bid to negotiate a labor agreement before Dec. 31, was way off base when he convinced some umpires to submit their resignations.
He served up an illegal pitch -- an attempt to throw the owners a curve by veiling a work stoppage as resignations. The umpires' contract specifically states "there shall be no strike nor other concerted work stoppage."

Protect The Children
JESUS IS QUOTED in Luke 12:48 in the Bible as saying that, "For everyone to whom much is given, from him much will be required."

Reform Sweepstakes
CONSUMERS WERE BIG winners this week when the Senate passed legislation that calls for million-dollar fines for sweepstakes companies that use misleading promises of riches in their promotional materials.

Director Nilsson posting uncut film scenes online
SAN FRANCISCO {AP} Renegade filmmaker Rob Nilsson is used to the naysayers. In fact, he has pretty much stopped listening, so he shrugs off questions surrounding his latest endeavor posting raw, uncut scenes from his upcoming film on the Internet.

'Witch' mania brews in Burkittsville
BURKITTSVILLE, Md. "This is the town office, Burkittsville, Maryland. ... If this is in regards to 'The Blair Witch Project,' it is fiction. ..."
Mayor Joyce Brown's exasperated answering machine message says it all about the new horror flick sensation that's presented so realistically documentary-style that some refuse to believe it's not a true story.

'Crown' role a change for Rene Russo
LOS ANGELES A 45-year-old actress doesn't just wake up one day and decide that the time is finally right for her to play a sexy woman in a big Hollywood movie.

Intimate Collaboration
The Museum of Texas Tech has been chosen as one of 12 institutions across the nation to host ''The Intimate Collaboration: Prints from the Teaberry Press.''
The collection contains 58 prints from artists William Wiley, Philip Pearlstein, Christo, Pat Steir, Ed Ruscha, Claes Oldenberg, Robert Arneson and John Baeder. The exhibit will be shown through Sept. 19.

Hasty Retreat
With the rare ability to sling a baseball 90 miles per hour comes attention and glamour, and inevitably, some scrutiny. There also are bound to be some bumps in the road.
Bobby Livingston has encountered his share of hurdles and obstacles during a brief and brilliant two-year high school baseball career, and for the most part, has found ways to succeed.

Supports Head
I read the letter "Hard-Hearted Judge" (A-J, 7-7) and had to comment on the lack of knowledge shown by the writer.

Memorial Ceremony
Saturday, July 17, my deceased husband was given a memorial ceremony that touched my heart very much. Ansil and Linda Locke of Highway 84, Sudan, dedicated their flagpole, raising the flag and the POW/MIA flag, then lowering them to half staff in his memory.

What's Big Deal?
Re: The letter, "No 'i' In Lubbock" (A-J, 7- 22). Personally, I don't understand what the big deal is with the pronunciation of Lubbock.

JFK Jr. Not Only One
Re: JFK Jr. recovery costs (A-J, 7-28). If I remember my American history correctly, in 1937, when Amelia Earhart's plane was lost over the Pacific, the United States government sent planes and ships to the area in an attempt to locate her. JFK Jr. was not the only one to get "special treatment."

Welfare Funding
Re: Funding of county welfare agency.
This is just a thought on my part that some of the affected may not like, but why couldn't the county welfare program be funded through the United Way fund? I agree that there will always be circumstances when people need help, and this would be a way to do it voluntarily, without taxing for it.

Unique Individuals
In our confused society, you don't always get the information you need to really enjoy living. There is much to experience in life that is available to anyone who wants it, because it is free and already belongs to each one of us individually.

Life Will Go On
The year 2000 is drawing nigh. So let it and leave it be. We cannot allow ourselves to become so irresponsible that the things we fear will come true.
I have actually heard, "I'm going to get a shotgun and stay in my living room for a couple of weeks." Will that be a paid vacation or will you be quitting your job? And when you accidentally blow a hole through your foot, are you going to wrap it in corn husks, or are you going to go to the hospital like the sane people?

School supply list
The Lubbock Independent School District elementary school supply list for the 1999-2000 school year

Supply and Demand
Excited children line the aisles at the store, eagerly picking out products they want while tired parents struggle to keep pace.
No, this is not a scene from Christmas shopping it's a typical scenario in the back-to-school areas of local stores.

Spreading The Word
(Editor's Note: The account of Gideon's moment in history can be found in the Old Testament book of Judges, Chapters 6, 7 and 8.)
By RAY WESTBROOK

Student fights drug test policy
A temporary restraining order was granted by U.S. District Judge Mary Lou Robinson in Amarillo this week allowing a Tulia student to act as drum major without submitting to the school's drug testing policy.

Crime fight pays off
Despite an astounding 11.5 percent drop in crime this year, Lubbock lost a little ground in its bid to be the safest city in Texas.
At the end of 1998, Lubbock had the 11th-lowest crime rate of the state's 25 largest cities, according to Department of Public Safety crime statistics. El Paso, which experienced a 15 percent drop in crime between 1997 and 1998, moved ahead and took Lubbock's previous No. 10 spot.

Reunion
The Lubbock High School Class of 1929 will hold its 70th reunion from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. Aug. 28 at Skyview Restaurant, located at University Avenue and 19th Street, on the sixth floor of the Bank of America building.

Scolaro loses appeal on judicial eligibility
A district trial court's ruling that elected, but not presiding, County Court-at-Law No. 1 Judge Susan Scolaro is ineligible to sit on the bench should be upheld, according to a ruling by the 7th Court of Appeals in Amarillo on Thursday.
The opinion affirms a March partial summary ruling that Scolaro should be disqualified to hear cases because she was not a practicing attorney for four years prior to the Nov. 3, 1998, election.

Lions Club TV auction benefits local charities
Lubbock Lions Club will auction enough gift certificates and merchandise to raise approximately $35,000 for its charitable activities when members set up three auction points in South Plains Mall on Aug. 14.

House allots funds for wind research
An appropriations bill passed by the U.S. House of Representatives late Thursday includes a $1.2 million grant for Texas Tech's Wind Disaster Mitigation Research Program.

Schwantz looking forward to future
Gary Schwantz says he is proud of his five years as a county commissioner but looks forward to joining his brother's consulting business.

Study: Littlefield city employees are underpaid
Littlefield city employees will likely see higher salaries after a study conducted by students at Texas Tech showed that, overall, employees here are paid less than in other cities of similar size.

Seniors use gardening to stay fit, healthy
Gardens throughout the country are suffering in the scorching heat, but Susie Marshall's back-yard vegetable garden in Jessamine County, Ky., remains her fountain of youth.

Endurance exercises can give trouble to digestive systems
DEAR DR. DONOHUE: Walking is my sole exercise. I try to increase my walking time and distance, but whenever I do, I get stomach pain. Am I doing something wrong? A.M.
Endurance exercise walking, swimming or running for protracted periods gives many people stomach problems. Some theorize the up-and-down movements of walking and running so jostle the digestive tract that it rebels.

Construction crews complete renovations at Columbine
LITTLETON, Colo. {AP} The bullet holes have been patched, colorful tiles brighten the hallways of Columbine High School and the library the scene of a deadly rampage last spring has been hidden behind a new wall of lockers.

TV networks settle dispute over JFK film
NEW YORK {AP} The syndicators of "Entertainment Tonight" agreed to settle a dispute that began when Fox accused the show of stealing exclusive video of John F. Kennedy Jr., the network said Friday.

Married couples fare best in GOP tax cut
WASHINGTON {AP} While all taxpayers would get some benefit if the Republican tax cut were the law today, married couples earning less than $100,000 would get the biggest percentage reduction.

DC security tighter than ever
WASHINGTON {AP} Over the past decade, metal detectors, armed guards and anti-bomb barriers disguised as mammoth planters have become almost as prominent in the capital as statues and national monuments.

War over taxes rages between Clinton, GOP
WASHINGTON (AP) President Clinton's threat to veto the Republican tax plan carried a familiar ring: ''This tax cut will not become law,'' he said again Friday. This time the GOP had a threat, too: Watch the poll numbers.
The president said he was ''disappointed though not surprised'' that Republicans had pushed their 10-year, $792 billion tax-cut bill through Congress on Thursday night. He calls the bill dangerously big, sure to create economic havoc if it becomes law.

GOP leaders backing new rights to sue HMOs
WASHINGTON {AP} House GOP leaders have agreed for the first time to back new patient rights to sue HMOs as they try to hold their fractured party together on health care.

Southern Party makes debut in North Carolina mountains
FLAT ROCK, N.C. {AP} Gathering at an inn where Confederate troops lodged during the Civil War, members of the new Southern Party held its inaugural rally Saturday, proclaiming themselves to be a force in future American politics.

U.S. still world's biggest arms provider
WASHINGTON {AP} The United States retains its title as the world's largest supplier of weapons, raising its total to $7.1 billion even though demand has been slumping worldwide, a congressional study found.

President announces education grants
LITTLE ROCK, Ark. {AP} President Clinton promoted a support system to help youngsters graduate from "the playground to the college classroom," announcing $120 million in grants Saturday intended to put higher education within their reach.

Reactor chugs up river toward place of burial
PORTLAND, Ore. {AP} A pair of tugboats chugged up the Columbia River on Saturday hauling a 1,000-ton nuclear reactor to a burial site, escorted by a Coast Guard cutter keeping other boats 300 yards away from the radioactive hulk.

Clinton sends child labor treaty to Senate
WASHINGTON {AP} The Clinton administration has sent to the Senate an international treaty intended to protect children from jobs that expose them to danger or exploitation.

Albright: Bombers will pay
WASHINGTON {AP} Private grief mixed with public outrage Saturday as survivors of Americans killed in two U.S. embassy bombings in Africa gathered with government leaders for a State Department remembrance.
Secretary of State Madeleine Albright spoke with steely resolve to continue the work of the dead and punish the culprits.

William Tye
FLOYDADA (Special) Services for William McClesky Tye, 81, of Floydada will be at 3 p.m. today at First Baptist Church with the Rev. Anthony Sisemore, pastor, officiating and the Rev. Wendell Horn, pastor of First United Methodist Church of Floydada, assisting.

Sally Horn
Services for Sally O. "Jackie" Horn, 60, of Slaton will be at 3 p.m. Monday at Abbey Chapel of Resthaven Funeral Home with the Rev. Chris Downer, Bible Baptist Church, officiating.

G.B. Johnston Jr.
LOCKNEY (Special) Services for G.B. Johnston Jr., 76, of Lockney will be at 10 a.m. Monday at First Baptist Church with the Rev. Gene Hawkins officiating and the Rev. Harold Abney, pastor, assisting.

Clifton Cade
DALLAS (Special) Services for Clifton Cade, 41, of Dallas will be held 11 a.m. Saturday at A.W. Wilson Chapel at Jamison's Funeral Home with the Rev. Elliot Lambert officiating.

Joe Kirk
Services for Joe Bob Kirk, 66, of Lubbock will be held 1 p.m. Sunday in W.W. Rix Funeral Home Chapel with the Rev. Jimmy McGuire officiating. Burial will be in Resthaven Memorial Park under direction of Rix Funeral Directors.

Jesse Martin
Services for Jesse Martin, 22, of Lubbock will be at 10 a.m. Monday at Franklin-Bartley Chapel with the Rev. Mark McMillan, pastor of First Baptist Church in Wolfforth, officiating.

Mazie Hasselmeier
PARIS (Special) Services for Mazie E. Hasselmeier, 97, of Kilgore were held at 3 p.m. Aug. 4 at Gene Roden's Sons Chapel with the Rev. James Elsom officiating.

D.C. Stotts
Services for D.C. Stotts, 78, of Lubbock will be at 10:30 a.m. Monday at Asbury United Methodist Church with the Rev. Dave Treat officiating and the Rev. Herb Tavenner and the Rev. James Carter assisting.

Lynn Martin
TULIA (Special) Graveside services for Lynn Martin, 67, of Tulia will be at 10 a.m. today at Rose Hill Cemetery with the Rev. Tom Baker, Christ Lutheran Church of Tulia, officiating.

Ettie Lee
SNYDER (Special) Services for Ettie Eula Elizabeth Fikes Lee, 72, of Snyder will be at 5 p.m. today at Northside Baptist Church with the Rev. Timmy Fikes, nephew, and the Rev. Jim Mosley officiating.

G.B. Johnston Jr.
LOCKNEY (Special) Services for G.B. Johnston Jr., 76, of Lockney will be at 10 a.m. Monday at First Baptist Church with the Rev. Gene Hawkins officiating and the Rev. Harold Abney, pastor, assisting.

Carl Higgins
Services for Carl M. Higgins, 95, of Lubbock will be at 10 a.m. Monday at Abbey Chapel of Resthaven Funeral Home with David Wilson, officiating.

Beatrice Dunn
Services for Beatrice Reyna Dunn, 38, of Lubbock will be held 11 a.m. Monday at Our Lady of Guadalupe Catholic Church with the Rev. Thomas Diebel officiating. Rosary will be said at 7 p.m. both today and Sunday at Chapel of Angels Funeral Home.

Jody Young
POST (Special) Graveside services for Jody Young of Dallas will be at 2 p.m. Monday at Terrace Cemetery in Post with Paul D. Jones, minister of Post Church of Christ, officiating.

William Felder
DIMMITT (Special) Services for William Herschell Felder, 90, of Hart will be at 2 p.m. Monday at Hart Church of Christ with Roy Shave, former minister of Hart Church of Christ, officiating.

Betty Hickman
ABILENE (Special) Graveside services for Betty Hickman, 67, of Early were held at 10:30 a.m. Aug. 4 at Elmwood Memorial Park with the Rev. Mark Reynolds officiating.

Francisco Castro Jr.
Rosary for Francisco Castro Jr., 84, of Lubbock will be said at 7 p.m. tonight and Monday night at Guajardo Funeral Chapels.

Willis Bennett Jr.
HOBBS, N.M. (Special) Services for Willis M. Bennett Jr., 63, of Lubbock will be at 10 a.m. Tuesday at First Baptist Church with Thomas H. Martin officiating.

Robert Fisher
TEXARKANA (Special) Services for Robert "Tooter" Fisher, 49, of Texarkana will be at 1 p.m. Monday at Fuqua-Everett Memorial Chapel at Texarkana Funeral Home with the Rev. Cranford Graves officiating.

Elise Biggs
SLATON (special) Graveside services for Elise Biggs, 86, of Slaton will be at 11 a.m. Monday at Englewood Cemetery with Bill Dobbs, minister of Church of the First Born in Prairie View, Okla., officiating.

Frances Mitchell
ANDREWS (Special) Services for Frances Johns Mitchell, 56, of Lubbock will be at 2 p.m. Monday at McNett Funeral Home Chapel in Andrews with Bobby Plunkett, of BPM World Outreach of Lubbock, officiating.

Lena Anderson
DeKALB (Special) Services for Lena Pynes Anderson, 92, of DeKalb will be at 2 p.m. Monday at First United Methodist Church with the Rev. Jonathan Bynum and the Rev. Rufus Castro officiating.

Ben Cornelius
CROSBYTON (Special) Services for Ben Leslie Cornelius, 82, of Crosbyton will be at 11 a.m Monday at Crosbyton Assembly of God Church with Edwin Brooks, pastor, officiating and Mike Casanova assisting.

Donald Gressett
SNYDER (Special) Services for Donald Pierce Gressett, 68, of Snyder were held at 2 p.m. Aug. 5 at First Baptist Church with the Rev. Marty Akins, pastor, officiating.

David Johnson
LEVELLAND (Special) Services for David Wayne Johnson, 59, of Levelland will be at 3 p.m. Monday at Geo. C. Price Funeral Chapel with the Rev. Bobby James, pastor of Parkview Assembly of God Church, officiating.

Guadalupe Paez
Services for Guadalupe R. Paez, 85, of Abernathy will be at 10 a.m. Monday at Monte de los Olivos with Oscar Paez officiating.

Dr. Kenneth Durham
TAHOKA (Special) Services for Dr. Kenneth R. Durham, 98, of Tahoka will be at 2 p.m. today at First Baptist Church with the Rev. Jerry Becknal, pastor, officiating.

Beatrice Dunn
Services for Beatrice Reyna Dunn, 38, of Lubbock will be held 11 a.m. Monday at Our Lady of Guadalupe Catholic Church with the Rev. Thomas Diebel officiating. Rosary will be said at 7 p.m. both today and Sunday at Chapel of Angels Funeral Home.

Michael Irvin ready to play
WICHITA FALLS {AP} The smile is back and so is the swagger. Michael Irvin is out of his offseason funk and determined to enjoy this season, even if it could be his last as a Dallas Cowboy.

Texas Rangers notes
Rangers left fielder Rusty Greer was out of the starting lineup with a sprained left ankle suffered while running the bases in the ninth inning of Friday night's game. He also has a bone bruise and is day-to-day.

Padres' Gwynn gets 3,000th hit
MONTREAL (AP) Tony Gwynn didn't stop after reaching his milestone. Just like Mark McGwire the night before, making history wasn't simply enough.
Gwynn went 4-for-5, singling in his first at-bat to become the 22nd major leaguer to reach 3,000 hits, as the San Diego Padres beat the Montreal Expos 12-10 Friday night.

du MAURIER OPEN RESULTS
MONTREAL {AP} Results Friday of the $2.45 million du Maurier Open championships at du Maurier Stadium (seedings in parentheses):

Titans hold practice at new stadium
NASHVILLE, Tenn. {AP} The Tennessee Titans, anxious to check out their new stadium, held a dress rehearsal Saturday at Adelphia Coliseum. And the initial reviews are just what the team wanted to hear.

Boggs homers for 3,000th career hit
ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. (AP) Wade Boggs became the first player to homer for his 3,000th hit, kissing home plate Saturday night to cap an amazing three-day run of baseball milestones.
One day after Tony Gwynn got his 3,000th hit and two days after Mark McGwire hit his 500th home run, Boggs reached his lifelong goal. And he celebrated becoming the 23rd player to reach 3,000 with an emotional trip around the bases.

McKnight will miss '99 season
WICHITA FALLS {AP} Dallas Cowboys receiver James McKnight, acquired from Seattle six weeks ago to be a deep threat, is lost for the season with a knee injury.

TENNECO AUTO GP LINEUP
DETROIT {AP} Starting lineup for Sunday's Tenneco Automotive Grand Prix of Detroit CART FedEx Championship Series race at The Raceway on Belle Isle, with car number in parentheses, driver, type of car, time in seconds and speed in mph:

Leslie, Sparks throttle Lynx 77-59
MINNEAPOLIS {AP} The Los Angeles Sparks held Minnesota to one basket in the game's final 11:37, and Lisa Leslie scored 29 points as the Sparks won 77-59 Friday.

NFL notes
New Orleans Saints coach Mike Ditka went into training camp saying he wanted his team to be tough and hard-hitting with a nasty attitude. He was referring to the games, though, not the practice field.

Richmond hopes to land in Miami
Mitch Richmond held out hope Friday that he could somehow be traded to Miami, while John Wallace rejoined the New York Knicks, Jaren Jackson re-signed with San Antonio and Lorenzen Wright left everyone wondering what he was thinking.

Astros notes
The doubleheader was a makeup of a rained-out game April 22.

BRICKYARD 400 RESULTS
INDIANAPOLIS {AP} Results Saturday of the 6th NASCAR Brickyard 400 Winston Cup race at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, listing finishing position, starting position in parentheses, driver, make of car, laps completed, reason out if any and prize money from the $6,147,061 purse:

Cowboys notebook
Thursday's Blue-White scrimmage wasn't a total loss, in spite of a string of injuries. Head coach Chan Gailey said there were some positives.

LPGA CHALLENGE SCORES
SUTTON, Mass. {AP} Scores Saturday after the third round of the $800,000 LPGA areaWeb.Com Challenge, played on the 6,334-yard, par-72 Pleasant Valley Country Club course (a-amateur):

Taylor's 'office' work leads to Hall
CANTON, Ohio {AP} Lawrence Taylor always approached his job as if he were one of the best in the business. The Pro Football Hall of Fame will second that opinion today.

Lehman charges into four-stroke lead at Buick
GRAND BLANC, Mich. With his eye on the Ryder Cup team and his first tour victory since 1996, Tom Lehman fired a third-round 64 Saturday to take a four-shot lead in the rain-soaked Buick Open.

Major League notebook
Jose Canseco's recovery from back surgery is going so well that the slugger thinks he could return to Tampa Bay sooner than expected to resume his quest for 500 career home runs.

Astros split two with Chicago
CHICAGO {AP} Houston manager Larry Dierker was dazzled last May by Kerry Wood's 20-strikeout performance. Another young Cubs pitcher impressed him one year later.

A new game
LA CROSSE, Wis. {AP} Ricky Williams arrived at the New Orleans Saints' training camp saying he just wanted to be one of the guys. It took less than a week for him to discover that's easier to do on the field than off.

MBL notes
The Phillies placed RHP Steve Montgomery on the 15-day DL, retroactive to Aug. 4, with a strained right groin. LHP Billy Brewer replaced Montgomery on the roster. Brewer, 31, was 1-1 with a 5.66 ERA in five starts and 5-0 with a 2.98 ERA in 28 relief appearances at Triple-A Scranton.

Development plan approved for land near Grand Canyon
FLAGSTAFF, Ariz. {AP} Developers will be able to build housing, hotels and restaurants on 270 acres of prime national forest land just south of the Grand Canyon under a plan endorsed Friday by federal officials.

Lawmakers worried about year 2000 bug
SANTA FE {AP} Some lawmakers are concerned that New Mexico is lagging behind other states preparing for the year 2000 bug.
"We're not quite comfortable yet," said Sen. Pauline Eisenstadt, D-Corrales.

States fear loss of lab control
SANTA FE {AP} The attorneys general of New Mexico and Colorado say a plan to create a new agency within the Energy Department could hinder the states' ability to enforce environmental and safety regulations at nuclear weapons sites.

Show tapes segment in Albuquerque
ALBUQUERQUE {AP} The words "Smile, you're on Candid Camera," are not what most people expect to hear while walking through downtown Albuquerque.

Border Patrol violated its own policies
CHANDLER, Ariz. {AP} The Border Patrol violated its own policies when it joined police to sweep downtown Chandler for illegal aliens but didn't violate individual rights, a federal report says.

Rainfall breaks records in Albuquerque
ALBUQUERQUE {AP} People who fled their homes this week as floodwaters rose and motorists who found themselves breaking the waves on New Mexico roadways are part of something big and very wet.

Sabotage will not sour contestant's outlook
LAS CRUCES, N.M. {AP} In a night club in Estonia a few weeks ago, 18-year-old Nikki Nelson, wearing a red, white and blue outfit, a sparkling baseball cap and six-inch stiletto-healed shoes, walked briskly to the heavy beat of techno music.
By the expressions on the judges' faces, she knew she was doing well.

Ahmed looking for 'hidden Islam'
CAMBRIDGE, Mass. {AP} It was the 27th day of Ramadan in Alexandria, Egypt. Leila Ahmed was age 6 or 7 when she followed her grandmother up the steps to the roof, the old woman's long black robe and veil blowing in the breeze.
Her grandmother always wore black, mourning a son lost long ago. But this evening was for celebrating, she told her. In Islam's holiest month, this was the Night of Glory when the gates between heaven and Earth opened and God might send the angels.

Total eclipse fever sweeps Planet Earth
LAND'S END, England {AP}At 11:10 a.m. Wednesday, the small island of Bryher in the Scilly Isles off southwestern England will go dark as the moon slides across the sun.

Nuclear reactor sails through Portland
RAINIER, Ore. {AP} Entombed in concrete and 6-inch steel, the radioactive reactor of the largest United States nuclear power plant ever to be shut down was loaded onto a barge Friday for a 270-mile river journey right through the heart of Portland.

Online publishers fulfill dreams of many writers
ALEXANDRIA, Va. (AP) Budding novelist George Vercessi felt he had written a spine-tingling thriller about a devious first lady who plots against the president. So, hoping for his big break, he sent the manuscript to numerous publishers.

Computer system allows checking out books without librarian
Until recently, the 98-year-old Rockefeller University library in New York City loaned books on the honor system.
Now it gets a little help from a computer chip that allows books to be checked out anytime of the day or night without the assistance of a librarian.

Do It Yourself programs go digital
KNOXVILLE, Tenn. {AP} Inspired to start a garden or remodel your kitchen?
Home & Garden Television's latest venture promises to tell you how on the air and on the web.

NCAA expected to rule against Notre Dame
CHICAGO {AP} Notre Dame officials anticipate a ruling from the NCAA that the school's football program has committed a major violation of the organization's rules, according to a published report.

Pope, Legg move up at Par Buster
After a bogey-free Friday round, Ricky Moss and Phil Karper emphasized how important it is to notch a limited amount of above-par numbers during the three-day Par Buster tournament.

SMU uncovers potential violations
DALLAS {AP} Southern Methodist, the only university punished with the death penalty for NCAA violations, announced late Friday it has uncovered potential recruiting irregularities in its football program and responded by suspending an assistant coach.

Pan Am Games bowling
WINNIPEG, Manitoba {AP} One pin. That's all the margin Janette Piesczynski had on Saturday at the Pan American Games.

Green Bay's Mayes settles lawsuit
SOUTH BEND, Ind. {AP} Jerry Dominiack, who sued five former Notre Dame players and his former bookkeeper to recover embezzled funds, reached a settlement Friday with former Irish receiver Derrick Mayes.

Hays considers son, LCU assistant for jobs
Lubbock Christian University coaches Daren Hays and Britt Smith may fill the two vacant positions on the Texas Tech baseball coaching staff, The Avalanche-Journal has learned.
LCU athletics director John Copeland said Friday afternoon he had not received resignations from either coach, but added ''I hear they are going to (resign).''

Tech task: How to play two aces
He never has taken a handoff in college football, yet Shaud Williams, in the eyes of some eager Texas Tech followers, already has relegated Ricky Williams to second-best running back on the Red Raiders' team.
That takes some doing given that unrelated Ricky is a returning second-team all-American, has the top freshman-sophomore rushing yardage total (2,476) in school history and spent the summer packing on the muscle with a consultant to Mr. Olympia Ronnie Coleman.

Prison system goes slow on castration program
AUSTIN Texas became the first state to allow sex offenders who prey on children to volunteer for surgical castration under a law passed in 1997, but so far no convicts have come under the knife.
''Nobody's had it and nobody's going to have it for a long, long time,'' said Glen Castlebury, spokesman for the Texas Department of Criminal Justice.

Investigators confirm cause of explosion
GRAPEVINE {AP} Investigators confirmed Saturday that a blast that ripped through a new hotel, seriously burning a man and injuring dozens of others with broken glass, was a gas explosion.

Texan wins $23 million in suit over diet drugs
CANTON (AP) A 36-year-old woman who faces lifelong heart problems she blames on the diet-drug combination fen-phen was awarded $23.36 million Friday.
Debbie Lovett of Grand Saline in East Texas is among more than 3,100 people nationwide who have sued American Home Products and subsidiary Wyeth-Ayerst Laboratories over health problems they say were caused by the drugs.

Quads mom killing trial set for March
SAN ANTONIO {AP} A $32 million wrongful death lawsuit over the 1997 Florida killing of the mother of quadruplets will not be heard until next year, a judge decided Friday.

Dolphin pool causes fierce controversy
CORPUS CHRISTI {AP} A planned dolphin pool has plunged the Texas State Aquarium into a fierce debate about whether confining the charismatic creatures teaches animal conservation or drives them to insanity and death.

After 24 years, UT gets ready to reopen tower
AUSTIN {AP} Stainless steel lattice now arches over the observation deck of the University of Texas clock tower, a reminder of the tragedies that have closed it to the public for 24 years and a sign of determination that its reopening next month will create only positive memories.

Y2K not a problem for agency
Amid complaints that the computer system in the child support division of the state Attorney General's Office is ''needlessly complicated,'' many Texas parents may be glad to know that the office is working to simplify the system while making sure that it's finally Y2K compliant.

Sales-tax holiday under way
DALLAS {AP} Dorothy Reese does a lot of her family's clothes-shopping at garage sales and second-hand stores, but on Friday she was in the boys section of Wal-Mart, helping her son pick out new shirts for school.

North Korean missile test believed near
WASHINGTON {AP} North Korea delivered rocket fuel this week to the launch site where U.S. officials believe it is preparing to test-fire a long-range missile in defiance of American warnings, a senior U.S. official said Friday.

Trinidad deemed as safety zone
PORT-OF-SPAIN, Trinidad {AP} Peter Bjerke is a giant of a man, 6-foot-6 and thick through the shoulders, with a wild shock of blond hair that looks windblown even indoors.

Russia honors troops who took Kosovo airport
MOSCOW {AP} Prime Minister Sergei Stepashin gave awards Saturday to Russian soldiers who made a surprise dash to the Pristina airport in Kosovo, briefly tying East-West relations in knots.

Hiroshima marks anniversary of bombing
HIROSHIMA, Japan {AP} In a nation increasingly worried about regional tensions, the citizens of Hiroshima on Friday recalled the moment 54 years ago when an atomic bomb decimated the city and killed 140,000 people.

Pride, need will dictate North Korea's decision on missile test
INCHON, South Korea {AP} This week, workers coaxed and wrestled 450 goats into sawdust-strewn containers bound for North Korea. The humanitarian gesture came days after U.S. and South Korean officials warned of economic penalties if the North test-fires a missile.

Poland rejects Holocaust lawsuits filed in the U.S.
WARSAW, Poland {AP} People who have filed suits in the United States seeking the return of property once belonging to Polish Jews are suing in the wrong jurisdiction, a Polish government lawyer said Friday.

Nicaraguans flee area near volcano
MALPAISILLO, Nicaragua {AP} Covering their heads to protect themselves from falling ash, hundreds of people fled from towns near the Cerro Negro volcano as the government declared a state of maximum alert Friday.

Rebel leader orders release of hostages
FREETOWN, Sierra Leone {AP} Sierra Leone's feared rebel leader on Friday ordered rogue allies to free a group of hostages seized earlier this week, and downplayed the threat the incident could pose to the West African country's fragile peace.

Asia launches cleanup as waters recede
SEOUL, South Korea {AP} For centuries, Koreans called it "The Water Demon" dark brown floodwater that swallowed everything in its way: cows, pigs, homes, rice paddies and often human lives.

Army chief: Rebels killed commander
BOGOTA, Colombia {AP} Leftist rebels killed a regional military commander in response to a series of successful anti-kidnapping operations, a Colombian army chief said Friday.

Kenyans mark anniversary of U.S. Embassy bombing
NAIROBI, Kenya {AP} Francis Ndungu gazed across the windswept vacant lot Saturday in Nairobi where the U.S. Embassy once stood and shuddered.
"I don't feel good. The only thing I remember is all the bodies," said Ndungu, a Red Cross volunteer who was among the thousands of bereaved, blinded and maimed who came to mark the first anniversary of the attack that killed 213 people and wounded more than 5,000 others.

Israelis may cease house demolitions
KHIRBET UMM EL-LAHEM, West Bank {AP} Israel's new moderate government has signaled it will stop or at least slow down the pace of the house demolitions that have infuriated Palestinians and undermined Israel's credibility.

Water could prove impediment to Mideast peace
TSURIF, West Bank {AP} In this part of the world, water is a quarrel as old as the stony biblical hills. But with Israel and its neighbors weathering the worst drought in decades, it has become a growing source of political tension one that could threaten the climate of hope and good will generated by the peace overtures of Israel's new prime minister, Ehud Barak.

1999 is the summer of Rome's discontent
ROME {AP} Andrea Shaw, a British honeymooner, swung her camera to her eye and focused on St. Peter's Basilica: Gray scaffolding, with a white dome peeking out the top.

Unclaimed bodies from train wreck ordered cremated
GAISAL, India {AP} As Hindu priests chanted holy hymns, thousands of villagers gathered by a Himalayan river Friday to watch the cremation of 145 unclaimed bodies from one of India's worst train accidents.
Hours before the ceremony, workers stacked wood onto the funeral pyres near the Balasan River in remote northeast India, and trucks transported the rotting bodies to the site. A second set of pyres was erected at the nearby Shahu River.

Sentence includes boot ban
DRESDEN, Germany {AP} German officials announced Friday they were trying a new tack against neo-Nazi violence when they banned a delinquent teen-ager from wearing the heavy, steel-toed boots favored by skinheads.

Cuba seeks life for accused smugglers
HAVANA {AP} The Cuban government said Friday it will seek life sentences for two U.S. residents arrested for alien smuggling after the boat they were piloting off the coast capsized, killing one of the would-be immigrants.

Mrs. Gorbachev's condition improves
MOSCOW {AP} Raisa Gorbachev, the wife of former Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev, was in slightly improved condition Friday at the German hospital where she is being treated for leukemia, her husband said.